This blog is about macro-economics, financial markets and the world that has been pulled over your eyes to blind you from the truth.

— Neo: What truth?
— Morpheus: That you are a slave, Neo.

2010-10-31

Buying Berkshire Hathaway was my biggest mistake, says Warren Buffett

This is an interesting interview conducted by CNBC where Buffett declares that the biggest mistake of his investment career was to buy Berkshire Hathaway. The video clip below lasts 4 minutes and is definitely a piece of history.

That said, I would not agree with Buffett on the compounding effect and the claim that it cost him $200 billion. Moreover, the lesson he learnt from that might have allowed him to avoid far bigger ones in the future, and to become rational in his investment process, so it might actually be the exact opposite. But hey, it's easier for him to claim he could be worth $200 billion more than to think about the positive outcomes of such a mistake, right?

He calls his 1964 decision to buy the textile company a $200 billion dollar blunder, sparked by a spiteful urge to retaliate against the CEO who tried to "chisel" Buffett out of an eighth of a point on a tender deal.

Feed subscribers: you might have to open the blog post in your navigator to see the embedded video.